Scarlet Matrimony
by Velvet-Skye
Summary: The Veela blood pumping through his veins craved her and it boiled with rage as it was neglected the feast Hermione Granger was. Draco Malfoy decided he would claim his bride by the end of the day,whether she was willing or not.Dramione/Veela fic.
1. Unwilling to Desire

_**A/N: Hello fellow readers! Well this isn't the first fan fiction story I've written BUT it is my first Harry Potter fic…and a Dramione at that! It was just a little something that was floating in my mind! So I decided to write it especially since there aren't many Veela stories out there. Hope you all enjoy it and nice constructive criticism is always welcomed! **_

_**-Ana**_

**Scarlet Matrimony**

**Chapter 1: Unwilling to Desire**

_He stood gloriously at the end of an emerald aisle. His grey mesmeric eyes held an enticing feral glint as he appreciatively drank the sight of her. She took a quick tentative step forward but a sharp movement to her left made her stop. Hermione snapped her head towards the movement and gasped as she caught sight of a gorgeous woman clad in an elegant silver-white mermaid-styled, strapless wedding gown. It was designed with a cascading train that trailed behind her in elegant silver folds, giving her the resemblance of a goddess._

_The woman's eyes were wide with awe as she stared at Hermione and that's when she realized that she was staring at her own reflection. Her honey-colored eyes observed the sight she made. She looked utterly breathtaking. Enhancing makeup made her skin look flawless and it pronounced the vivid gold hue that deepened her eyes. Her tumultuous hair was pinned at the top of her head in smooth, perfect ringlets that tumbled down silkily. The gown hung to her curves sensuously and sparkled as the diamonds woven into the thick satin caught the rays of sunlight filtering through the high cathedral windows._

_She realized a man's arm was linked to hers and she looked at him with wide eyes. It was her father. He smiled at her and told her she looked perfect. Hermione was suddenly aware that she was a bride and that she was getting married. But married to whom? Her eyes slowly trailed up the aisle, to where the handsome man stood. There was an arrogant air about him yet appealing. He was tall and lean; sinewy muscle could be recognized under the obviously expensive tailored black suit he wore. Panic gripped her heart as she took in the sight of the familiar flash of brilliant white-blond hair and mercurial silver eyes._

"_Malfoy," she whispered to herself. She suddenly felt ill and the walls of the impressive gothic cathedral seemed to close in on her. Her breath came out in short gasps as her eyes darted around for an exit. Her mind screamed and begged for her to run but she knew she couldn't. Why was she doing this? Frustrated tears threatened to spill over as she still watched the man she was about to wed. Hermione looked at the many people in the church pews, their faces blurred by the angry tears. But she knew they contained her family and friends. How could Harry and Ron let her do this? Why didn't they stop this madness?_

_Hermione looked back to the dashing groom. The aura around him seemed to have darkened with threat and anger, as if he knew what was going on through her mind. His grey eyes flashed dangerously; a threat directed at her. Instead of a smile gracing his mouth it was set in a grim, tight line. Hermione dug her heels into the emerald carpet and let a dismayed gasp escape her lips. She stared at the young Malfoy, his face a solid cold and indifferent mask but his eyes were livid. He purposely strode down the thick carpet towards her and grasped her wrist; she looked around weakly for help but everyone had melted away in a mist. Her eyes darted back to the stormy ones, "Draco, why are you doing this to me? Why are we getting married?" she pleaded for answers, "I don't want this!"_

_His eyes softened slightly and he tugged her small body against his strong one. He traced her lips with an elegant long finger as he murmured, "It doesn't matter what you want or not because you** belong**__ to me."_

Hermione's eyes fluttered open and she couldn't help the shiver that ran down her spine. She turned to her side and curled herself into a fetal position as she put her knuckles in her mouth to keep the long string of curse words to escape her lips. That particular dream always bothered and angered her. It always reminded her how she had felt the day she married Draco Malfoy. She had felt utterly powerless since she couldn't stop the wedding.

Hermione wished that being Malfoy's bride would remain a nightmare but alas she was no longer Hermione Granger; she was Hermione Malfoy now. A smooth, lean arm wrapped itself around her waist and she stiffened. He shifted to get closer to her and even though she wished she were repelled by his inviting warmth, she wasn't. Hermione fought with all her might to resist him.

"It's been two weeks Hermione," he said softly, his voice husky with sleep and she couldn't help the tremor of desire his voice coaxed. It was difficult to remain upset when such strong desire coursed through her body every time Draco touched, kissed or spoke to her. Heck, she even had a hard time feeling upset towards the blond man when she thought of him.

"Two weeks since I was forced to marry you," Hermione snarled quietly. Draco snickered, amused by her viciousness and he twisted her around gently for her to face him.

"Don't think of it that way-"

"How can I not?" she hissed.

"We were meant to be. You are mine. You belong to-"

"No one, I don't belong to anybody. I'm not just some object you can stake claim to!"

Draco's gaze darkened.

"You are mine and legally too and I will have to claim you very soon, you know it's inevitable."

"Well I don't want you," Hermione cried stubbornly. His eyes softened with the hurt that her words caused and he replied, "You can't do anything about it anymore Hermione, you might as well give in completely. I need to make you mine and mark you."

"I'm not interested-"

Her words were cut off as Draco pressed his soft lips to hers. Fire burned through her veins and desire automatically fogged her brain, but she was Hermione and she fought hard, she refrained from succumbing to his seduction.

He groaned in frustration and pulled away, knowing she was fighting and that she was practically immune to his sensual ministrations.

"Why do you fight it?"

"I wouldn't if it was anybody but you," she murmured heatedly.

"Ouch. Now Mrs. Malfoy play nice," Draco laughed, which made the ire within her rise.

She pulled away from him roughly and scrambled off the king-size bed of green and silver silks. She glared at him with pure hostility.

"I hate you."

Draco crossed his arms behind his head as he lay arrogantly in the middle of the huge bed and he smirked.

"Keep telling yourself that, in about a week's time you'll be saying the opposite."

"Ha! That's what you said many weeks ago Malfoy. I doubt I would ever be capable of loving you. Claiming me would be a waste of your efforts to make me actually give a damn about you."

At this Draco jumped off the bed angrily and pinned her against the wall. His face was contorted in furious agitation. His nose was practically against hers as he sneered, "The law gives me the right to take whatever I feel is rightfully mine from your part and whenever I want, so tread carefully Granger. Neither Potty nor Weasel will save you from me Hermione, because they stand behind that law, as should you. So maybe you should show a little appreciation will you? Start by at least acting like you do care about me."

Hermione's felt the tears of resentment burn her eyes but she wouldn't let them fall; she hated that he had so much control over her. She was frustrated because she was powerless to change what had befallen her.

"What are you going to do? Force me? Just like you forced me to marry you?"

Draco smirked at this and he brushed a silky tendril from her face, brushing her cheek tenderly in the process.

"There's no forcing to be done. We are mates, a little hesitation with your defenses from your part and you will be mine; in not only body but also heart. I care for you Hermione. I have been giving you time to adjust these past two weeks since I didn't give you enough time to adjust to the idea of marrying me so soon."

"But I didn't- I _don't _want this! You were cruel to me in school and now suddenly we're married. I didn't want to marry you, I wanted a choice-"

"Shh. Listen to me," Draco said smoothly to the fuming woman as he rubbed her arms with his hands in a comforting manner, "When any other man kissed you or touched you, did you feel the desire and satisfaction as you do with me? Did you feel the same overwhelming lust towards any of them as you do with me?"

Hermione was silent; she didn't want to admit it. Every relationship she had tried to build in the past had been a failure. She knew it had been because of her, she had been detached because every man she had been with stimulated exasperating ennui, therefore she never sought anything else. There were no sparks and no chemistry with any of them; it was bland and she never felt the sense of true carnal desire. The first time she had ever felt such fascinating passion was the first time she dreamt of Draco Malfoy in their last year at Hogwarts. So she resorted to glaring at the blonde man in front of her, stubbornly refusing to reply.

"Admit that your heart, mind and soul were searching restlessly for a man that would awaken those feelings that are only heard in fairytales or felt in your dreams of me…admit it, please."

"Why does it matter if I admit it? I'm sure you already know the answer," Hermione said waspishly with narrowed eyes.

"It will make me feel immensely better."

"Why would I to a man who ridiculed me because of my blood and treated me like scum in school? How can I forget that?" Hermione snapped.

"I didn't know I loved you or what you actually were to me and even then I would put you down because I was attracted to you, I craved your attention. There was no other way for you to pay any heed to the spoiled little boy that I was, unless I insulted you. Hermione we've gone through this already," he scowled in irritation.

"Even if you didn't know you loved me, you shouldn't have treated me that way. There are other more civilized ways of gaining someone's attention," Hermione sniffed.

"I don't disagree with you there, although you are aware of why I was that way. Principles of blood purity were engraved into my mind since I was born, it wasn't entirely my fault that I was completely ignorant," Draco said solemnly and he leaned forward to kiss her lips softly. Hermione felt dizzy with tantalizing pleasure that only he could coax from her. But before she could give into his tempting ministrations she quickly pushed him away.

"I'm going down to the beach," she muttered. Hermione headed towards the entrance of the fairly small cottage.

"It's still dark out," he drawled as he sauntered back to the bed. "It's five-thirty in the morning Hermione, don't be ridiculous."

"I'll see you in an hour or two Malfoy," Hermione said as she waved nonchalantly, "I'm only going for a walk anyway."

She made it out of the little cottage without any other words spoken by Draco. She heard the hiss of the waves and she breathed in the salty tropical air. Hermione sighed and proceeded towards the water. The sand was cold but the water was the perfect temperature. It was a bit on the chilly side but she felt she needed it to simmer down her anger and frustration. A breeze blew through her long tumultuous curly hair and made the red silk ripple around her legs.

She decided to go into the ocean for a swim. Hermione bit her lip not wanting to re-enter the cottage so she decided to go in with her sleeping gown. As she entered the ocean, gooseflesh automatically rose on her body and she quickly dove into the waves before she had any second thoughts. The water automatically enlivened her senses and Hermione swam into deeper water at ease; the silk nightgown flowed around her body in a pool of blackened crimson.

The cool darkness of the morning gave it a nice thrill as the water shocked her sleepy form. While she swam in the salty sea water her mind was soon bombarded with thoughts of the blond man residing in the cottage at the moment.

There were no doubts that he was an extremely handsome man and there was a darkness about him that had her nerves electrified with sensual yearning. He was tall and lithe, his lean muscled body lined with hidden strength. His white-blonde hair was as soft as the silk she had slept on for the past two weeks and it fell gracefully above his eyes in smooth platinum wisps. His eyes were the most stunning of all his beauty. His grey eyes defined him. Hard, cold metal when his defenses were up or his aristocratic arrogance appeared, dark silver when angry or frustrated and smoky when aroused. Hermione closed her eyes as a pang of carnal passion sizzled through her blood, a reaction she was getting used to when she thought of Draco…her _mate_.

_**Another A/N: Hope you enjoyed it! Tell me what you think, I'm truly interested because I want to see if I should continue to post this story or not. It depends the feedback I receive because I am a little uncertain about this story since the ship (Dramione) and category (Harry Potter!) are completely new to me. All your reviews are very important to me because they serve as great encouragement.**_

_**- Ana**_

_**Review Please! :]**_


	2. Ritualistic Dreams

**Chapter 2: Ritualistic Dreams**

He was her mate, her husband. Draco Malfoy was hers.

She was his mate, his wife. Hermione Granger was his.

They belonged to each other, legally and magically. Hermione cursed under her breath; she couldn't believe she was actually married to the one, last living Malfoy. He was the bane of her child-hood existence and now the bane of her adult-hood and beyond existence. The worst of it was that choice had been stolen from her. Hermione recalled the day clearly when she was apprised that she would soon be the wife of Draco. It had been the day of Hogwarts Graduation about three and a half months ago, whilst celebrating the end of their school years and the defeat of Voldemort …

_**Molten silver eyes stared at her intently as he softly kissed the inside of her wrist, his kiss left a spot of exquisite fire and Hermione felt lust wash over her in waves of pleasing warmth. **_

"_**Draco," she murmured pleadingly. There was an ache inside of her that she knew he could only satiate. **_

"_**Hermione," he whispered. An esoteric promise laced within her name, "I love you."**_

_**She quickly replied, "I love you too…"**_

_**Draco chuckled darkly and in the silvery light he offered her a sexy smirk, showing subtlety sharpened canines that glinted threateningly, but she wasn't afraid. She trusted him wholly and she didn't really comprehend why.**_

_**He lowered his mouth to the inside of her wrist again, his mesmerizing smoky orbs still watching hers, and he bit her. Hermione let out a little scream as his teeth cut into her delicate skin, blood poured out and Draco lapped it up. He looked beautiful with deep red blood tainting his alluring lips. The wound on the inside of her wrist burned uncomfortably and she tried to pull it away from him but he wouldn't let her. The wound's burning increased and she tried to free herself but he had her pinned; Draco's body acting like an inescapable cage. It didn't escape her mind though that he was tender with his every move as if she were made of the most delicate glass. **_

_**He conjured a dagger encrusted by emeralds and he cut the inside of his own wrist shallowly. Draco placed his wrist to her closed mouth and she tried to twist away from it, but the sweetness of his blood's smell had her licking it up soon enough; her arousal reaching impossible heights…**_

_Hermione woke slowly from her strange dream, her body hummed with thirsty want for the young man in it. She languidly stretched on her bed, a thin line of perspiration covered her whole body and there was an almost unbearable throbbing between her legs. Her sanguine sheets were twisted around her lean legs and the cool satin felt superb against her extra sensitive hot skin. She thought of the silver eyes and as her mind woke with her body, so did her rational thoughts._

"_Oh!" she exclaimed as she realized who she had just dreamt of and who she was still thinking of. Hermione sat up quickly and swayed as a wave of brief nausea racked through her small frame._

_She was shaken by the dream and of its intensity. But before she could dwell on it any longer she realized the late time and jumped out of bed to get ready for the last day of school at Hogwarts._

_

* * *

_

_**Graduation Celebration: 13 Hours Later**_

_Hermione decided to head outside for fresh air. The Great Hall was joyous but tinged with frail sadness as the seventh year students celebrated the end of their Hogwarts' days and she just needed to take a break. She needed to have her alone time for a few moments. _

_Tactfully she sneaked away from Ron and Harry's side and stepped out. She quickly made her escape through the entrance of the ancient school. The wind bit it at her skin and she shivered; it was quite cool for a summer night. _

_Hermione walked down to the lake's shore and sat down on the damp grass under the beech tree; not caring if she soiled her new glistening royal-blue dress. She stretched out her shapely legs in front of her and sighed._

"_Tut tut Granger, haven't your parents taught you how to treat your clothes with care?" a luring voice drawled from the darkness, startling her briefly. Hermione then groaned in annoyance after she composed herself; she was extremely irritated that her few seconds of peace were already interrupted. _

"_Malfoy, for you information, I paid for it with my own money. So how I treat it is irrelevant to my parents, and plus a simple cleaning charm will do," she snipped. She hoped he would go away, but alas, she had no such luck; instead he came out from the shadows, which immediately reminded her of her dream as the moonlight lighted parts of his face and shadowed others. He sat down beside her. Hermione suddenly felt as if her nerves were shocked with an electric wire and she had to suppress a whimper of unexpected pleasure his nearness caused. _

"_Hermione," Draco said softly, caressing each syllable of her name sensually and she jumped at the sound of her name from his mouth. Hermione's physical and emotional senses were suddenly ultra-sensitive by his nearness and impossibly so, she had never felt anything like this with anyone and especially not with him. She was taken aback by the feelings washing over her and was almost rendered speechless by the magnitude of them._

"_Yes?" she choked. Her mouth had gone bone dry and she wondered if her reactions towards him were caused by the dream she had. Her belly tightened gradually with smoldering arousal, teasing her warming body as a few images of the dream glinted in her mind like shards of glass spread out on a smooth, moonlit surface. In each visual image the color of smoky silver easily identifiable._

"_I dreamt of you last night."_

_Hermione's eyes bugged out of her head and she turned towards him in shock._

"_You did?" she squeaked. _

"_Yes and I believe you dreamt of me."_

_Hermione almost fainted at that sentence, from complete shock and embarrassment. _

"_What makes you think that?" she asked weakly, although she jutted her chin out in strong defiance._

"_I don't think so, I know so."_

"_Oh, really?" Hermione asked bitingly, her eyes narrowed into angry slits and instead of answering he said instead, "Have you read about the Veela people?"_

"_Yes," Hermione said, confused by the change in subject but she let him go on. She was curious as to where his conversation would go. Her mind was tired and weary from the long day and she failed to notice the acute knowledge in his pale eyes. All thoughts of the dream had fled her mind for now as she tried to remember what she had learned on the Veela people._

"_What do you know about them, list me the details I'm curious," Draco said softly, she suddenly became aware of a strange possessive smugness brightening his eyes and of the smirk threatening to curve his lips._

"_They have extremely fair complexions…like you actually. I once wondered if you were part Veela in my first year when I had first read about them," she said cautiously. Truly, she once had pictured Draco as a Veela but she had never felt particularly aroused by him like the books stated she would. At the moment though, she was contemplating the possibilities, especially with how her body was reacting. Maybe she had never been physically close enough before…_

"_Mmm. Go on. Tell me about the mating process…you are aware of the fact that they have m-"_

"_Mates, yes," Hermione whispered as she blushed, "Once they know who their mates are, whoever has the Veela blood pumping through their veins marks their mate and they both exchange blood, it's the way they bond forever. So, if there are two Veela mates they bite each other on the inside of their wrists and if it's one Veela they inflict a wound upon themselves to assist their less magical mate in tasting their blood. This all occurs before the lovemaking."_

"_You are very well informed; now tell me Hermione how do you find out who the Veela's mate is?"_

"_Through dreams, whether you have Veela blood or not both mates have a dream about the other on the same night and almost every night after until the Veela marks their mate."_

"_And do you know how the dream goes?" Draco said so quietly she barely heard. His eyes were closed now, and there was peacefulness upon his face that seemed too intimate for her to watch._

"_I- I…it's the marking ritual, where the Veela bites the inside of… oh," Hermione gasped in horrification as everything clicked into her mind._

"_So who did you dream about last night love?" Draco asked; his silvery eyes flickered open and she had to suppress a gasp as they seemed to glow with anticipation. They stared coolly into her fearful ones._

"_Malfoy! This is a horrible joke! What curse did you use? I swear if it's illegal I'll report you to the aurors!"_

_Draco furrowed his eyebrows._

"_Hermione this isn't a joke," the Slytherin prince drawled, "You are my mate."_

"_B-but…you are Veela?" Hermione whispered, her eyes wild with disbelief and fear._

"_Partly," Draco smirked, "My father's grandfather was half-Veela and my mother's mother was half-Veela. I've inherited many of the Veela peoples' traits, therefore I have to follow through their rituals, and the most important are the binding rituals with my destined mate."_

_There was a long silence that followed his words. Hermione's eyes were glazed as she tried to process and believe the information Malfoy was giving her. She blinked a few times and focused her eyes on him._

"_I seriously can't believe this. This isn't true. Draco, it's our last day of Hogwarts, you- you're just-"_

"_Just what? This isn't a trick Hermione. This is serious."_

_Hermione stood up to walk away; she couldn't listen to any of this! Her eyes stung with tiredness and this boy was frustrating her! How dared he distress her and on such a day! The audacity of that Malfoy prat! _

_Draco stopped her by grabbing her wrist and pulling her down. Before the Gryffindor princess could protest, Draco pressed his searing lips against hers. Firm and full of purpose he attacked with hungry fervor._

_Magnificent, inexplicable heat flared through both beings. Hermione moaned into his mouth forgetting anything and everything; she drowned into the abrupt but exquisite passion. She just felt the tsunami of pleasure that was drowning her. Draco growled appraisingly in return. He nipped her lower lip and felt her fragile soft skin break under his teeth. He chuckled darkly as he tasted her delectable blood for the first time. Bliss thundered through his body as he declared her for him. Once the Veela had tasted their mate's blood the mate was theirs; bound by law. _

_The first out of three claiming rituals was complete, which was when the Veela tasted their mates intoxicating blood for the first time. It was a way of addicting himself to her. A way of insuring he seriously couldn't live without her. Draco was aware that Hermione had read about the Veela people but not the specific Veela laws; which he was glad for because now he had the upper hand and she had no choice but to marry him. If she had known she would have fought this kiss; she would have made sure he didn't taste her blood._

_The girl in his arms whimpered as her lips burned deliciously. Draco situated himself between her legs for his arousal to press against her core as he skillfully maneuvered his tongue into her hot sweet mouth. Pure pleasure burned through Hermione's small frame and a sense of incomprehensible satisfaction filled her being because of his touch. _

"_Draco," she moaned throatily as she pulled away from him to look into his eyes. Her mind was hazy from the incredible desire crawling within her, slowly the haze unfurled and she was able to see the man who she had just so willingly snogged. She jumped off him and before he could speak she ran back to the castle._

_

* * *

_

_**Gryffindor Tower: A Few Minutes Later**_

_Hermione had to force down the bile that threatened to spew out of her mouth as she stormed into her room. The common room had luckily been deserted since everyone was still celebrating or in bed. She ran to the bathroom and exhaled and inhaled heavily as she tried to steady her heart and the despair that weighed her stomach._

"_S'not true! No,no,no!" Hermione moaned pathetically as her knees buckled and she fell on the marble bathroom floor. She pulled her knees up to her chin and she rocked herself. Her honey eyes were wide with staggering alarm. She had read about Veelas as she had about dragons, ghouls, and vampires and a matter of all sorts of magical creatures; therefore she knew pretty much everything about them and some of the basic laws pertaining to their type of people. The thought of anyone she knew, being one of those mythical creatures had never crossed her mind. She would have never even thought the impossibly handsome Draco Malfoy, her most irritating nemesis, would turn out to be a descendant of the Veela people. And even less likely, for that particular person to be her mate!_

_She realized that she wouldn't get to choose who to marry like every other normal girl. Hermione would forever have affectionate but yet superficial feelings for a man she truly hated after they bonded. Affection for him would only be induced by his magical blood; it would be more of a sensation than a mind thing. Her soul would permanently be tied to Draco Malfoy's for eternity and there was no way out of it. She was sentenced to imprisonment in a cage made of unbreakable iron, the iron being the Slytherin prince. _

_She felt raw angry fear tighten her throat. She knew for a fact that marriage was inevitable. There was no way out of it or around it. The laws were as solid as diamond shackles tied to every part of her body. Hermione rubbed her face with her hands roughly and pinched the bridge of her nose. Her heavy mind searched for a loophole out of the marriage. Somewhere in her mind she remembered that there may be a way out. A sliver of information flickered through her mind; a Veela had to commit one of the bonding rituals (of which she didn't know the details) to stake legal claim upon their mate, therefore giving their mate no choice but to marry them. Hermione's heart fluttered with hope, Draco hadn't done anything thus far but kiss her. She breathed in shakily as her mind pleaded with the heavens for this to all go away and just be a nightmare._

_Unbeknownst to her though, Draco had already accomplished the first ritual. He had staked claim on his mate, 'addicting' himself to her and thus she had no possible way out of the marriage legally anymore. He had taken the choice away from her, like the true Slytherin he was._

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_**A/N: First of all….. A HUGE THANK YOU to all my readers! Your support is very much appreciated! **_

_**Thank you to my reviewers (love you all!) and to the people who added me, my story on their alerts and/or favorites! All of you have been very encouraging and thanks to you I've decided to continue posting this since I've received such positive feedback. **_

_**I want to remind all of you that constructive criticism is always welcomed! And if you have any questions or comments that you wish to be private just PM me, I'm a rather friendly and understanding person. :]**_

_**Also I want to let you all know that this story won't be very long, I believe it will be under 10 chapters and if the length changes I will let you know!**_

_**Thanks once again to all of you:**_

**Gaarasracoon, xoxo-Gabriela-xoxo, thuydeebird, BroadwayNightOwl, Katie, Shadow Girl, sweet-tang-honney, Ldeetz, Heloise, Creative Pixie, cyn23, isaraaries, Chea, iluv2dance, D.R., gravity01, laughing Nell, uremia, Gauri92, maialia, , Sarina, HerGoldenWings, leeyfjs, TheCullenCrest, margaritama, ebm56, Daemonai, ChillyWilly2295, dramione 4ever, EdwardFangJasperEmmettIggysigh, guardgirl414**

**If I didn't get everyone I'm terribly sorry and I give you permission to yell at me if I did! :P**

_**Review Please! :]**_


	3. To Want to Need

**Chapter 3: To Want to Need**

**A Month after Hogwarts Graduation:**

_**A tingling burn seeped into his muscles. Pleasant at first, as he dreamt of the wondrous girl with honey colored eyes and luxurious dark hair. The silver prince groaned as he imagined her body wrapped around his. Her body was supple and so very inviting. A sharp flare of heat cascaded through his nerves…he was now on the verge of pain. Under her thin, silken skin, he could practically feel and smell her sweet blood pulsing through her veins. He pulled her body closer to him and felt exasperated as she tried to pull away. Couldn't she see he needed her? It wasn't fair that she fought him off so much. He just wanted to mark her. He just wanted her to be his, forever. He would treat her like a queen.**_

_Draco woke up, silver eyes flashing with aggravation. He rolled over on his bed to face the ceiling. _

"_Hermione," he whispered huskily. Adoration and desire laced into that mere vocal breath with an undertone of vexation._

_He had always wanted her and now he needed her. She was being so bloody stubborn over the whole thing. _

_Draco smirked, even though he was irritated by her constant 'rejection', he couldn't help but be amused. His little ferocious kitten was doing everything in her power to prevent the marriage from ever happening. But he was going to do everything in his power (just like he had planned many weeks ago) to thwart all her efforts. He would win; he just knew it because he had the whole ministry behind him. Firstly he already had law on his side since he was part Veela and secondly because of his now deceased father, Draco had all the right influential connections._

_Nothing could ruin his plans unless someone as nosy as Potty found out that Hermione actually did have a choice. There was a piece of information Draco couldn't allow to be known. And if they did find out…_

_Draco cringed picturing his beautiful Hermione snatching that option and leaving him before he could have any say or chance to…beg for her to stay. He couldn't let that happen, hence why he was rushing through the whole process and not giving her time where she could actually research every little detail. He wouldn't put it past her that she wouldn't marry him just to watch him suffer for all the years he had tormented her._

_He wouldn't let that happen, he would probably die without her in his life, so he was doing everything in his power to keep her. Malfoy was paying and blackmailing everyone in the ministry who knew of his little secret. He was aware that he had the Malfoy reputation, therefore he took advantage of that; they wouldn't mess with the last living Malfoy who was just as intimidating as the previous and even more so when his mate was tied into the scenario. They were aware that he could get a little __**possessive**__. _

_**A Month and a Half after Graduation: Harry's Apartment**_

_Hermione apparated into Harry's flat with a loud crack. The first thing Harry saw were her fiery eyes and then he took in her disheveled appearance. There were dark circles around her eyes; an indication that she had been working hard, not only in pursuing her career but also putting a lot of effort in finding a way out of the marriage to the young Malfoy. Her hair was extra frizzy, probably because of the stress. Her clothes were slightly wrinkled which wasn't very Hermione-ish and she was unsurprisingly scowling. _

_She walked up to him and waved a parchment in his face. Hermione's eyes were dark with resentment._

"_Proven."_

"_I told you. It was unnecessary to go all the way back to the ministry for that little piece parchment stating it. I've been working on your case too 'Mione." _

"_But I'm positive he hasn't done the first ritual Harry! I only remember him kissing me…he's lying!"_

"_Hermione, as much as it pains me to say, you have to marry him. He'll turn the whole ministry against you, most of the Wizengamot members are already voicing their displeasure with your disagreeable reaction to this whole ordeal throughout the ministry. It will make pursuing your career nearly impossible, " Harry Potter murmured calmly to a frustrated Hermione, "They've tested him to see if it was true he completed the ritual and as you see, it's proven that he has tasted your blood." _

"_But Harry I don't even know how he managed to taste it! Maybe he altered the results, to show that he did taste my blood even though he truly didn't."_

"_I was there Hermione when they tested him. It's true. Malfoy told me that on Graduation night when you both kissed, he bit your lip and you bled."_

_Hermione groaned and rubbed her face roughly with her hands. Like a brilliant flash of lightning she abruptly remembered the blond biting her and suckling on her lower lip. She briefly remembered his firm lips against hers had been full of intention. She had forgotten because when she washed her face that same night of the kiss, there had been no sign of even the slightest abrasion. _

_Anger electrified her nerves. Draco Malfoy had known, he had done that purposely. He had taken her choice away! _

"_You need to accept all this 'Mione."_

"_But it's nearly impossible! What if you had to marry him Harry? There are same-sex mates you know…so how would you feel if you were suddenly informed of the 'marvelous' news that you belonged to Malfoy?"_

_Harry's eyes widened and he sputtered._

"_That's different-"_

"_No!" Hermione argued, "No, it's not different. I dislike him as much as you do, maybe even more especially since he made it clear to me that I'm inferior to him. Do you know what it's like not having a choice Harry? To marry in about a month and a half even though I'm freshly out of Hogwarts? I'm not even twenty yet! How in the hell am I supposed to accept this!"_

"_You don't have to be twenty to marry legally," Harry pointed out. _

"_Well I don't want to get married yet, and especially not with Malfoy," Hermione hissed angrily._

"_I'm sorry Hermione, but law is law. Not even I can help you-"_

"_Isn't marriage supposed to be about respect, devotion and love? That's what I've always dreamt of and now it's being taken away from me. Malfoy has always put me down and thought of me as scum. I don't want to be forever accompanied by a man who believes me unworthy Harry!"_

_Harry Potter blinked not knowing what to say. He could assure her that Draco had changed and that he had promised Harry that he would treat Hermione like a queen therefore he definitely didn't see her as unworthy, on the contrary she was his universe now. But then again Hermione had a lot of reasonable explanations as to why she was being so adamant to the idea of marrying the young Malfoy. Harry felt guilty and rotten for not being able to help her more but there was truly nothing he could do. _

"_Harry you have so much influence in the Ministry of Magic for destroying Voldemort! I'm sure you can do something about it. Maybe this Veela thing isn't so serious. Think about it, Draco isn't completely Veela." _

_Hermione was in complete denial. Deep inside her she knew it was futile to try and get out of the marriage but her stubborn mind hoped and hoped for a possible way out. Rationality was definitely not showing in her arguments but determination certainly was._

"_I can't do anything Hermione. It's impossible, he's inherited most of the Veela qualities; the magical blood is barely diluted. You are his mate, as hard as it is to believe, so you have no choice. All Veela rules apply to him and now of course to you. I wish I could change this Hermione. I love you and I care for you immensely but I seriously can't do anything."_

_**Two Days Later: Hermione's Apartment**_

"_You never even tried to befriend me Malfoy! Before you took my choice away completely!"_

"_What did you expect, for me to woo you? Ha! That's a joke. I have more pride than that Granger; I'm not that type of man."_

"_Screw pride! Why couldn't you at least try to be more charming? Maybe then I wouldn't be so disagreeable with all this."_

"_Why would I work so hard for something that's already rightfully mine?" Draco smirked. He walked up to her and curled his arm around her waist, "Completing the first ritual was just a precaution to make sure you couldn't get away. Just sealing the deal, cara."_

_Hermione tried to wriggle away from him but it was ineffective, he was too strong and he wasn't even trying. He leaned towards her and brushed her lips with his briefly._

"_That would be extremely uncharacteristic of a Malfoy," he murmured huskily. Hermione tried to keep her breathing level as her nerves buzzed once again with the intense lust she had for the young man holding her. She felt overwhelmed as the powerful emotion of anger and the powerful sensation of lust swirled within her._

"_I need you," he whispered against her lips._

"_Because of your Veela blood, but it doesn't necessarily mean you truly want me."_

"_Heck! Granger that's not true, you've always had my attention, everything about you captivates not only my senses but also my mind. I don't only need you but I honestly want you. I want you so much it's almost pathetic. Why do you think I addicted myself? Why do you think I would make myself need you through my Veela blood?"_

"_Why couldn't you give me more time?" Hermione practically croaked; with the sensations running through her body she was surprised she could even talk._

"_Because I get what I want when I want. You are mine and I've decided to claim you," Draco said firmly. His grey eyes glinted steely with feral possessiveness and Hermione felt her stomach flutter in response with arousal. _

"_I can't do this. You were in an arranged…pure-blooded engagement with the Greengrass girl a few weeks ago! What happened to that?"_

"_The arranged engagement was broken the moment you dreamt of me and who cares about blood anymore? Tsk Granger, we are living in a new, more civilized era. Plus the Veela laws have always been highly regarded and cannot be broken in any way…my sweet Granger, you should know this!" Draco teased and Hermione scowled._

"_Usually when I've been backed into the corner with a wand at my neck, I tend to forget important little details Malfoy. I'm focused on finding a means of escape," she seethed._

"_Well sometimes when you need to escape you need to observe the finer details. Hmm and it's not so bad to marry a Malfoy," Draco whispered with an overconfident smirk playing on his lips. He kissed her lips tenderly again and pulled away slightly, his lips barely touching hers. Draco's sweet breath stroked her lips sultrily as he murmured, "I will never neglect you in any way. I will show you passion and I will respect you. I know that I've acted like an arse time and time again, but there's more to me Granger and I'm going to show you that I'm not so bad. After I complete all the rituals you will see that you will be more than content with this arrangement."_

_Hermione sniffed with disdain, "You haven't changed. You're still an arse who only thinks about your wants and needs. You are so opposed to giving me time to adjust to this idea, why's that Malfoy?"_

"_I want you now Hermione. You will be my wife in less than two months, I promise you that. I'm not waiting," Draco whispered coolly into her ear before latching his lips onto her delicate neck. Hermione tried to push him away viciously and he nipped her in retribution._

_Hermione snarled, "SO you get what you want when you want?_

_Draco chuckled against her skin with dark amusement, "Exactly."_

"_Selfish arse!"_

"_I can't wait to make you mine, completely. In about a month and a half I will have to complete the other rituals. I agree to give you as much as that time allows for you to adjust to this idea as best as possible. I'll take you out more because we are in dire need of spending quality time together," Draco murmured against her skin as he continued to kiss and lick her neck. _

"_Speak for yourself. I don't want to spend my last weeks of freedom with yo-" _

_She gasped as he lowered his arms to run down her back and grasp her bottom. Agilely he lifted her up effortlessly and in reflex to not fall back she wrapped her legs around his waist. She glared at him and was about to voice her disapproval but she caught the look of raw lust etched on his face. Hermione breathlessly admired his smoky coal-grey eyes. _

_He smirked as her lips parted slowly to lick her lips nervously. She knew he knew she was aroused. Hermione's head fell back with a groan as he secured his hold on each off her nether cheeks and used them to steer her hips to brush steadily against his hardness. _

"_Mmm, I can feel your heat Hermione," Draco moaned smoothly into her ear. Hermione mewed back in response as he pushed her gently against the wall and began grinding against her sweet center in slow, blazing earnest. In a matter of seconds Hermione was panting. Draco kneaded her derriere and then with tantalizing ardor he smoothed his hands across her quivering thighs, over her firm naval and then to cup both her heaving breasts. One of his hands continued to rub her breast whilst the other plunged into her voluminous hair and pulled her head up for an exhilarating kiss that made her toes curl._

_Hermione gasped loudly into his mouth when she heard a loud pop of apparition disturb the silence, other than their soft gasps, moans and groans. Draco growled in annoyance and broke the kiss, however he made no effort to move from the position they were in._

"_Potter," he growled, "What now?"_

_Hermione felt her cheeks grow hot with embarrassment and she struggled to separate herself from Malfoy's hard body. She shoved at him and unhooked her legs to stand on solid ground, but he grasped her wrists and smirked at her devilishly. Hermione growled, infuriated by the blond man. _

"_Let go of me Malfoy!"_

"_I believe you don't really want me too, Granger," he whispered mischievously. A silken curtain of platinum hair fell gracefully over his mercurial eyes, shading them; hence giving him an alluring smoldered look. _

_His eyebrows suddenly furrowed and Hermione had the strange urge to comfort him. That feeling made her furrow her own eyebrows in confusion and almost gag._

"_Draco…please let go. Harry's here."_

"_Yes Malfoy, I am here to talk to Hermione about her current predicament, you are welcome to hear what I have to tell her," Harry said. Hermione glanced at him with curious eyes. She tried to free herself once again from Draco's grasp but he didn't budge. His eyes were cold and he was suddenly tense._

"_Oh c'mon Malfoy!" Hermione said impatiently, "After we get married I'm sure we will share kisses more than often, to your insistence of course. I really want to know what Harry has to say."_

_Draco let her go and swiftly turned to Harry. His eyes were icy; no trace of a smirk on his lips, and Harry smirked at him callously, his green eyes glittering with smugness. Hermione watched the exchange curiously and apprehensively. Even though Harry believed Draco would take care of Hermione, he still couldn't help but feel intense dislike towards the arrogant man. _

"_Why don't we all sit down," she suggested as she made her way into her living room, both men followed. Her embarrassment was forgotten as soon as she had caught the avid twinkle in Harry's eye, she knew he had somewhat good news. Wonderment also seized her mind as she studied Draco's hostile behavior, but what was most interesting was the look of nervous vulnerability that flickered, entrenched in his iron eyes. She narrowed her eyes, automatically she became suspicious, it was now obvious he was hiding something form her and she would have to find out what it was. As soon as they sat down Harry began to speak._

"_There is a possible way out of the marriage," he blurted out. Draco's grey eyes clouded with frosty, unadulterated anger. His lips had thinned into a tight grim line, and the whites of his knuckles stood starkly against his already pale skin. Hermione witnessed his left hand twitch towards his wand, undoubtedly inside his black business suit. _

"_Accio wands!" Hermione murmured, both men turned to her. Harry pouted, since he was aware Draco would have given him enough reason to hex him and Draco glared at her._

"_Now," Hermione said as she tucked away their wands and cleared her throat, "What exactly do you mean Harry? Is there truly a way out?"_

_Harry opened his mouth to answer but was interrupted as Draco jumped off the couch and snarled viciously._

"_Damn it Potter! Why can't you just keep your bloody nose out of everyone's business?"_

_Harry stood up to fight back but Hermione snapped at him, "Harry sit!"_

_Harry sat back down slowly with reluctance and then he said ferociously, "She's like my sister Malfoy. I want what's best for her and what makes her happy. She's unhappy with this arrangement, or haven't you noticed?"_

_Draco growled and paced like an angry caged dragon, Hermione was almost expecting him to breath fire and burn poor Harry into ashes especially with the murderous glare he was sending the Boy-Who-Lived._

"_We talked about this Potter," the blond hissed, his eyes dark and fiery, "Who would better protect her than I? Who better than the mate who would give their life for hers? It isn't a choice, not for me and not for her. I would give her what she deserves, she wouldn't be lacking in anything. She knows this, she's only being a stubborn hellcat."_

"_Hey!" Hermione shouted indignantly._

"_Well I believe she deserves a choice, so I'm giving her one," Harry said sharply. _

"_What's my other choice?" Hermione piped._

"_It's another choice I am not sure you would decide on. Your decision will be based on which disagreeable situation you would somewhat prefer," Harry said truthfully. Hermione sighed softly and glance over at Draco, who was leaning against the wall; his face a frigid mask._

"_Your other choice is that you marry whomever you want, but since Malfoy is 'addicted' to you, he would have to pretty much practice vampirism," Harry's face contorted sourly, "You would have to give him a vial of your blood to him every four months to decrease the intensity of the pain he will experience as a resort to quenching his 'addiction' to you."_

"_What?" Hermione hissed, she was about to yell her complaints when a dark chuckle escaped Draco's lips. Harry glared at him._

"_What's so funny Malfoy?" Hermione barked. Her anger caused him to laugh even more, his eyes dancing with callous amusement._

"_You forgot one important little detail Potter. She must conceive a child with said man before the already planned date of our wedding, which is in less than two months, or else her marriage would automatically be…nullified."_

_Hermione groaned with desperation, "I don't want to get married with anyone in the first place yet, much less conceive a child so soon or to give my blood to bloody Malfoy every four months for the rest of my life! Merlin, there's no tolerable way out!"_

"_No there isn't…the sooner you face it, the better," Draco said as he smirked contentedly , the fleeting glimmer of relief in his grey orbs did not go unseen by Hermione or Harry. Both Gryffindors instinctively took this into account and concluded that the Slytherin was indisputably hiding something. _

**A/N: I am aware this is a really late update and I do apologize! I am so sorry! I'll admit that this chapter was very difficult to write and to be quite honest I don't think I did such a great job on it, I'm not satisfied with it but I had no way of changing it without changing the plot I have in mind. It also took a long while to complete because school has been quite hectic for me, lots of homework and extracurricular activities have gotten in the way. I promise though that there won't be any more late updates like this one. This, I'm sure was a terrible wait and I hope you all forgive me.**

**Well I hope you all still did enjoy it! And seriously, thank you all so much for your support and encouragement! The reviews and PM's have been so awesome and they all make me incredibly happy!**

**Thanks again to EVERYONE! :D**

**-Ana **

**Review Please! (you could all yell at me for updating so late if you want to!) :P**


	4. A Contract

**Chapter 4: A Contract **

_**Two Months After Graduation (A Month Before Wedding): Ministry of Magic**_

_She didn't want to be here, however Draco's Veela rights didn't allow her to not show up. The office was so white that it stung her eyes as she entered it. Hermione glanced back towards the entrance as she took a seat on one of the purple cushioned armchairs and watched her tall, lean fiancé enter with squinted eyes. Behind him, his stout attorney strutted in behind him. Hermione glowered as she watched the plump woman raise her nose in apparent haughtiness as she shuffled past Hermione to take the chair farthest from her; leaving an empty lavish chair between them. But the empty chair was not unoccupied for long because of course Mr. Draco Malfoy sat in it immediately. Thick silence followed after they were all seated as the waited for the Head of the Enforcement of Veela Laws and Regulations Division to join them._

_Hermione shifted uncomfortably. Apprehension made her belly flip uneasily as she thought of what she was about to do. It was settled of course; there had been no point in paying thousands for her own attorney because in the end it would be pointless to try to oppose laws that couldn't be undone. She peered over at Draco's attorney and looked away hastily as the woman gazed at her intently. Her piggy eyes stared at Hermione from behind thick red-horned glasses; her beady eyes narrow with apparent impudence._

"_Really Malfoy was it necessary to bring an attorney? It's a little melodramatic," Hermione asked smoothly, turning her blazing gaze back toward the portly attorney. The woman's lips thinned. The corner of Draco's lip twitched, his eyes staring at the wall ahead of him as he answered._

"_I thought it wise to bring her for influencing purposes."_

"_Influencing purposes?" Hermione bit out slowly, she knew whatever he was going to say was going to anger her more than she already was, she saw the intent glimmer in his silver eyes. A flash of anger sizzled through her golden ones, darkening them ominously. A threat that amused Draco further as he made eye contact with her._

"_I'm sure her presence will encourage you to keep your temper in check. Miss Evans here, will remind you to be on your best behavior, in case you decide to not cooperate by not signing the contract. You tend to dismiss the little fact that I am the one with the rights and that you have no choice," Draco said silkily, a smirk slowly curving his lips and his attorney had the audacity to beam! Hermione shook with the urge to throttle them both._

"_Ahh, so you need to higher a woman to help you control your future wife? Am I too much to handle baby?" Hermione cooed in a sickeningly sweet voice that had Draco cringing; he clearly sensed the deadliness behind the viscous sugar. His brief anxiety though, drowned in the surge of anger Hermione riled. She had totally insulted him. _

"_A Malfoy could handle anything and everything Granger. But you see, with her being here I think it will be a little reminder in the back of that big brain of yours that your career at the moment is greatly influenced by the situation you are in right now and since you don't want to cooperate with me, I was hoping you may cooperate with someone of high rank and authority in the Ministry of Magic, which is where you want your career to be. The only thing we are asking of you is to cooperate. In a sense, I'm doing you a favor," he drawled._

_She was cornered, against a wall with the sword at her neck and the blond arse knew it. Hermione pressed her mouth into a tight line and fought the stubborn tears that threatened to prick her eyes. She nodded stiffly. The back of a cool hand brushed her cheekbone delicately and she stared at Draco with irate eyes. She pulled away from him._

"_Why are you making me sign this contract?" Hermione snapped, the prickling behind her eyes quickly forgotten._

"_Why not?" Draco asked back, innocently, and she narrowed her eyes._

"_If there is supposedly no way out of this marriage now that you completed the first ritual, then why are you making me sign a contract that insures I marry you under any circumstance?"_

"_Miss Granger," a high nasal voice cut in before Draco could answer; it was his attorney, "Please refrain from asking imprudent questions. You are signing whatever Mister Malfoy asks you to sign because it is in his Veela rights. You have no say."_

_Hermione glowered wrathfully. She knew Draco bloody Malfoy was making her sign the damned contract because there was a way out of the marriage! She just didn't know exactly what it was but she knew he was hiding something of utmost importance that would turn the tables. He was obviously winning the war they had going on and if she signed the contract, she would be doomed to marry the pompous ferret. At the moment it was a war of wills. She had wanted a decision and he had taken it. She just wanted a choice and if she was given any other reasonable choice she would definitely take it just to vex him, to show him that he couldn't get whatever he wanted when he wanted all the time. She desperately wanted to knock the Slytherin prince off his high-horse. _

_Hermione's angry thoughts were cut short as a handsome black-haired man swept into the room._

"_Well, what do we have here?" he asked to no on in particular. His icy blue eyes glanced at Hermione briefly and then swept over Malfoy and Evans. _

"_Ah. The Malfoy case," he said as he took a seat behind the large ebony desk that was positioned in the middle of the office. He summoned a white file and thumbed through the papers within it._

"_Well let's make this quick, I've got a very busy schedule," he said as he looked fixedly at Hermione's obstinate facial expression, clearly wondering if she would put up a fight therefore prolonging their meeting. She frowned as he conjured a bottle of red ink and a fancy quill. He handed the quill to her._

"_The contract Miss Evans?"_

"_Here you are Mister Simmons," she said as she speedily opened her distasteful bright-orange briefcase and whipped out a surprisingly thin roll of parchment tied in red and gold ribbon._

"_Red? Gold?" Hermione asked Malfoy, a glint of brief amusement dancing in her eyes when he nodded. She couldn't help but feel a tiny twinge of it, as she thought of how he went out of his way and even pride to use her house colors on his 'property', instead of his._

_Simmons unrolled the parchment and scanned the words with his eyes rapidly._

"_Mm. Well Mister Malfoy," Simmons began as he plucked the quill from Hermione's hand, "This contract is pretty much pointless since you've already completed the first ritual."_

_Draco smirked, "When it comes to Hermione Granger we must take great measures for insurance. She's an extremely bright witch, I wouldn't put it past her to figure out an alternative."_

"_Mm-hmm. Whatever you wish Mister Malfoy, being a Veela gives you the right and sadly takes away hers. No matter, let's finish this up," Simmons declared as he dipped the quill in the inkpot and signed at the bottom of the parchment with enthusiastic flourish._

_He then passed Hermione the quill and the contract. She sighed dejectedly as she began to read the contract. It was overtly lengthy and wordy for a piece of paper that merely stated that she would wed him no matter what, unless of course either one of them died. The appealing thought of murdering Malfoy flitted through her mind._

_Dipping the quill into the inkpot, Hermione promptly glanced to the side where a pair of intense mercurial eyes watched her. The young Malfoy smirked at her and his eyes flashed with triumph as she brought the extravagant quill closer to the creamy rich parchment. The parchment that would seal her fate._

_Hermione felt the tingling of enragement spark her body once again and she was very tempted to whip the inkpot across Malfoy's perfectly smug face. So she focused her scornful gaze on the detestable contract. Her eyes narrowed in fiery concentration as she brought the quill tip closer to the thick parchment; her hand trembling with repressed fury. _

_With slowness that was almost painful to watch, Draco watched her with anticipation as she lowered the quill down onto the parchment. Her trembling hand didn't go unnoticed by him and an unexpected emotion twisted within him. A twisting discomfort that resembled something akin to guilt. Draco couldn't help but feel a little bad for her. He knew how the Gryffindor lioness was; determined, stubborn and quite the fighter. It was the end of her rope, all of her attempts had been fruitless because now with this little signature she __**had**__ to marry him. It was incontrovertibly unbreakable. The contract signing was as solid as an Unbreakable Vow. Unlike the first ritual, which in some irregular cases such as his, there were absolutely no loopholes with the contract. _

_Slowly she pressed the tip of the quill to the parchment and began her signature. A pressure filled her ears and hurt pride made itself known. Restless like an aggravated lion, resentment coursed through her. She quickly finished her signature and huffed as she set the quill down. _

_Draco signed after her and so did the porky Miss Evans. Simmons dismissed them and Hermione fled the office as if the devil was behind her…which he might as well be since she was aware of the blond demon exiting the room right after her._

_**An Hour Before the Wedding**_

_Flawless. Perfect. Stunning. Beautiful. _

_The woman peering back at her from the full length mirror reflected raw bitterness and anger through her dark eyes, contradicting the words that described her physical appearance. Hermione's face was scrunched up with sullenness and behind all the angry resentment, unhappiness was barely shadowed. _

_In less than an hour she would be married to Draco. Hermione Granger would soon be Hermione Malfoy._

_She sank onto a white, gold-embroidered armchair and sighed as she pinched the bridge of her nose in evident frustration. She jumped in the chair when two familiar men barged into her large dressing room; aggressively shouting at each other._

"_You lying rotten filth Malfoy! Why did I expect anything else from you?" roared Harry as he purposefully walked towards a wide-eyed Hermione. Malfoy tried to pull him back through the door they had entered, by roughly pulling at the bottom hem of Harry's tailored suit._

"_POTTER! Don't do this!" Draco shouted, his eyes wild and his customary perfectly groomed hair completely disheveled. Harry turned around aiming his fist directly at the blond man's nose but Draco reflexively ducked._

_Hermione took this as a cue to interfere and she shot up from her sitting position, "HARRY! WHAT'S GOING ON?!" _

_Both men froze in their struggles to pummel each other and stared at her._

"_Hermione…you look…beautiful," Harry whispered in awe._

"_Now that's off your chest Potter, let's discuss whatever we were speaking about, like civil men…outside," Draco said in the iciest tones Hermione had ever heard him use._

"_You two aren't leaving," she said sharply, "What's going on Harry?" Hermione directed her gaze at the green-eyed man. Trepidation prickled her nerves._

"_Don't ruin my day Potter," Draco growled murderously._

"_You've already ruined her life, do you see how unhappy she is?" Harry shouted, he then turned to Hermione and said softly, "Hermione, you never had your choice taken away by laws. They were taken away by Malfoy."_

_Hermione whipped her head to the side to glare accusingly at Draco, who was frozen on the spot with cold intensity. His emotions were on lockdown, not even a glimmer of distaste or guilt or shame were given away. Draco remained stoic and wintry, the only indication of his fury was shown through the tenseness of his shoulders._

"_Please explain further Harry…" Hermione whispered, her quiet voice laced with barely repressed rage._

"_One of the Wizegamot members I was interrogating, confessed that Malfoy was blackmailing him. He told me that Draco had lost some of his Veela rights over his mate for his involvement with Voldemort. Instead of imprisoning him like all the other Deatheaters, that was his punishment…to actually give you a chance to either marry him or not. You have the right to fight this in court Hermione!"_

_Hermione felt as if she would collapse, the only thing whizzing through her mind was the contract and the sharp memory of her shaking hand signing it. Permanently sealing her fate to him. She obviously hadn't wanted to sign it, but he hadn't given her a choice. Just like Harry said, __**they were taken away by Malfoy**__. She would have truly preferred if the law been responsible for taking her rights to decide away, but knowing that the man she was just about to wed had done everything in his power to do so, was discouraging. At the bottom of her heart she had hoped that she was just acting paranoid and that Malfoy wasn't really hiding anything from her…but the truth undoubtedly stung, he had tricked and forced her to sign it. This proved that she was marrying the same boy that ridiculed her in Hogwarts; a deceitful, malicious, inconsiderate, self-centered prat._

"_You don't have to marry him and I wouldn't if I were you, he's a manipulative arse," Harry sent a death glare at a now smirking Draco._

"_But I do Harry," Hermione spoke softly as she collapsed onto the chair, her shoulders slumped as she buried her face into her small hands. Unnoticed by Harry and Hermione, concern and guilt simmered over Draco's angular features briefly. The urge to kneel down in front of her, to comfort and beg for forgiveness pulsed within him, but his pride wouldn't let him, he just fought it back._

_Tears didn't come for Hermione at first, in her mind she knew they would be pointless. The rage she felt towards the Slytherin remained more unwavering than ever because now she knew the truth of him. He hadn't changed, she was marrying a liar and to tie herself permanently to a lying, arrogant man would only bring her distress, heartbreak and unhappiness. She felt her throat constrict painfully and the back of her eyes burn with repressed tears, but they didn't come which she was glad for…she wouldn't want to cry in front of him. She raised her head to glare at him and then snarled, "Well, you got what you wanted!"_

_Draco cocked his head to the side, peering at her with raw arrogance as he smiled coldly, "I'll meet you at the end of the aisle, mon amour." _

_Harry glared daggers at him as Draco pivoted and left the room. Meanwhile, Hermione buried her face in her hands again as she felt her lips tremble as the onslaught of tears threatened to spill over._

_In a few minutes, she would __**have**__ to walk down the aisle and wed the bane of her existence: Draco Malfoy._

_**A/N: Don't kill me! I know, I know! I guess I deserve to be thrown tomatoes, porcupines, cabbages and a matter of all sorts of things…I apologize. I'm so sorry, it's been months, I'm horrible. I promised I would update soon after the other one but my computer crashed! So I had to re-due all sorts of school assignments and of course rewrite the next few chapters of Scarlet Matrimony! It was a virus that prevented my computer from turning on and it corrupted all my files, so the technician couldn't save those. It's been horrible my fellow readers, truly horrible. Well I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I know it's not my best but after my work got erased my enthusiasm went with it. But I hope you all still liked it! **_

_**A COLOSSAL thank you to all my readers, including the people who put me as their favorite author, the people who put this story under favorites/ alerts, and of course each and every one of my amazing reviewers! :D**_

_**Love you all! **_

_**-Ana**_

_**Review, pretty please!**_

_**P.S. the next chapter will be explicit, I will put a warning up at the beginning of it. ;)**_


	5. Veela's Need

**Chapter 5: Veela's Desire**

He needed her.

Draco felt starved to the point of madness. Frustration clawed it's way through his body, angering him and increasing his displeasure. His body literally ached with repressed desire. His skin burned and itched; a result of not marking his mate. The Veela magic seemed to suffer in enragement and protest as it was not fed what it craved the most. Like a caged ravenous animal the Veela blood viciously burned through Draco's body and soul in retribution. It wouldn't kill him but it would surely drive him insane.

He needed Hermione.

Draco groaned as he pictured her willingly sprawled under him as he surged into her hot body with animalistic need. He hardened at the vivid pictures his mind conjured, torturing him endlessly. The blond man clenched his teeth as a flash of painful heat tore through his body, the Veela in him wailed for the girl that plagued his mind.

"Hermione," he breathed out harshly through his teeth, his eyes were screwed shut in pain. The Veela blood wanted her and it boiled with rage as it was neglected the feast Hermione was. Draco whimpered as another hot flash sizzled through him…it had been too long ago since he first tasted her blood and started the Veela frenzy.

_I deserve it_, his own thought whispered through his mind tauntingly. His lips twisted into an agonized smile, oh how he did deserve it. The memory of Hermione's furious, wounded eyes glaring at him with unrelenting contempt as they had both stood facing each other in front of the altar darted through his mind.

"_You may kiss the bride."_

_He hesitated as he stared into the cold, stoic eyes of his…Hermione. It was unnerving to say the least for in his mind she was the epitome of warmth and now this woman in front of him could be considered an ice queen. A leaden weight seemed to drop to his stomach, he hoped with every fiber of his being that she wouldn't remain to feel this cold rage towards him, that it would wear off. It seemed engraved into her, so intense it seemed permanent. He knew that he had betrayed her and she wasn't going to forgive him easily, __**if **__she ever did._

_He didn't show his anxiousness though, he masked it with the look of smug triumph and his trademark smirk was firmly fixated on his lips. He slowly leaned over to kiss her, wondering, as he neared her lips, if they had maybe frozen over and were as hard as marble for her face seemed to be carved from stone. _

_Suddenly his head jerked roughly to the right as the sharp sting of Hermione's slap blossomed across his cheek. His head turned sharply to stare at her, his gray eyes looking at her with utter surprise and the collective gasp of the crowd didn't go unheard by him._

_A surge of bliss shot through him and he fought the smile threatening to form on his face as he saw the flicker of heat in her eyes, a hot fury that befit her more than that cold murderous anger that had been radiating from her throughout the whole ceremony. The iciness was melting as the licking flames of righteous anger made itself known, meaning the shock of his betrayal was fading. What she did next surprised him, she kissed him! She grabbed his chin forcefully and pecked him on the lips before she whirled around and stomped down the emerald aisle away from him._

He was ripped away from that particular memory as another bout of painful heat tore through his body and he suppressed his groan. The pain wasn't excruciating but it was painful enough to cause major discomfort and it would continue to burn through his body until he tasted her blood again. Draco grimaced, he wouldn't allow it to continue to bother him and cause him pain. His mind was so clouded with thick desire and with such powerful want that he decided he was going to claim her by the end of day. A smirk twisted his lips as a predatory gleam shone through his eyes like that of a feline's during its hunt; Malfoy was about to embrace his inner Veela.

Hermione flipped onto her back and let herself float. Her limbs were lazily spread apart, her body forming the shape of a star. The waves lapped against her body gently and her crimson dress swished fluidly around her. Her hair flowed around her face, crowning the Gryffindor princess. Her face was serene and peaceful, the hint of a lazy smile gracing her lips.

Draco watched his goddess lay on the inky sea. The night's darkness was fading away, along with it's twinkling diamonds. He turned his head to the east and caught sight of the fiery sun beginning to peek out from the Caribbean horizon.

He stealthily made his way down the sugar-fine, white-sand beach. His prey was unaware of his presence as she dove into the waves. Coherent thoughts were ignored as a rush filled his ears. Lusty excitement filled his being as his eye was trained on his mate. He was going to claim her. He couldn't bare it any longer, she would be his and he was going to make love to her today. All day and all night. He was going to fill her body with his, along with his essence until she couldn't keep her honeyed eyes open anymore from exhaustion. Desire pulsed through him, his scarlet blood was steaming. Anticipation lighted his body and lust tightened his groin. He quickly tugged off his clothes, his alabaster skin bathed in the delicate golden light of the morning and his sinewy, lean muscles rippled as he silently slipped into the salty water. Flames flickered within his mercurial gaze as he disappeared under the gentle waves.

Hermione felt her skin prick. Her senses perked; she strained to listen over the waves of the ocean. She heard a ripple of cloth behind her and she turned her head sharply to face the shoreline. She caught sight of an emerald piece of cloth whipping across the sand and her eyes narrowed. Before she could call out to her _husband_ a pair of iron-steeled arms encircled her waist and used her body to pull themselves out of the ocean.

"'Ello princess," a velvety voice whispered in her ear.

Hermione shivered in his arms and she tried to twist around to face him but he wouldn't allow her. He slowly traced her jaw with his nose and he placed a kiss on her jaw line.

"Draco-"

"Shh."

"Malfo-" she gasped as he pulled her flush against him and placed his bent knee between her thighs. His hands held her hips firmly.

"Draco," she choked out. As soon as he had touched her, a blast of lust had erupted thickly through her veins like molten lava. It was so overpowering, and the intensity of it had her whole body trembling delicately. Her eyes slowly drooped with desire, thick lashes shadowing her eyes. Her nipples pebbled and liquid heat pooled between her legs. His presence had brought on a sudden wall of heat that seemed to stroke across her skin, sensitizing it and causing her body to instantly react.

Sensing that his oppressive desire for her was so powerful; she felt that she would give him anything he asked of her, as long as he didn't stop, she was even willing to forgive him as long as he kept his current unspoken promise of giving her the greatest, timeless pleasure of mating. The air was charged with raw sexual electricity and his lust was undoubtedly infectious.

Pleasure. How her skin pricked with violent desire. She wanted him to give her pleasure and she knew he would deliver it. The fervent yearning that blanketed her body and mind was so hot and consuming it could have frightened anyone. A question suddenly bloomed in her mind, _why was she feeling lust so impossibly strong_? She lusted after Draco beyond anything she had ever felt but now she was feeling that same lust tenfold!

Somehow, through the lust-inducing trance, Hermione detected a buzz of energetic magic seeping out from his very pores; it was invisible but there was undoubtedly an extremely potent sexual aura about it.

Anger suddenly shot like a red-hot bullet through her mind. Draco was doing this to her. He was obviously using some sort of Veela compulsion magic to aid in seducing her. With that thought she tried to rip away from his grip before she could succumb to the delicious pleasure he was offering her but he didn't allow her to, instead he pulled her tighter against him.

She felt his incredibly hard organ pressed against her derriere. Hermione managed to twist around slightly to stare into his clouded eyes, a smoky gray so dark they almost looked black. They were sharp with knowingness, dusky with feral lust and dark with insensitive amusement. She scowled at him but from the blatant emotions in his eyes she knew there was no escaping his desire to claiming her today. Draco Malfoy was about to claim her as his mate and please her body like no other man ever had. A mixture of anticipation and arousal tightened her belly even though her mind was still prisoner to the red hazy mist of unyielding fury.

Draco growled low in his throat as he curled one arm around her waist and dropped the other to trace her slit through the red silk with his fingers. Hermione couldn't help the pleasured gasp that escaped her lips as he cupped her mound in his hand. With the pad of his thumb he began to rub her hooded-clit, prodding out for his attention. He smirked as she leaned against him for support as her body shuddered with pleasure. He tangled his hand into her hair and twisted her face towards his, he captured her lips with his, their tongues dancing with each other intricately.

Exhilaration made her nerves tingle. The pleasure he was bestowing upon her body was electrifying and so incredibly intense that the fury was ebbing away to make room for the carnal sensations overtaking her body. She decided right then that she had waited enough, she wouldn't push him away today. For all the weeks that she had neglected him it was to punish him for what he did and she knew he had suffered but she couldn't deny that she had also suffered for neglecting her own physical needs. Hermione realized that her own body had been anticipating this moment for too long and her mind now craved it wholly as well.

The Slytherin made his way to the beach shore. Once out of the water he placed her on her feet (breaking the kiss) and she turned to him to continue the kiss; that is when she realized he was completely naked. A spasm of pleasure electrified her as his appealing body was revealed to her completely. His alabaster skin glittered with the droplets of ocean water as the early sun's rays hit his naked sculpted body. More heat pooled between her thighs, as she drank in the sight of him…he was an Adonis. She peered into his face from beneath her lashes, raw sexual hunger etched into the dark honey, and he smirked. He walked to her and then lay her on the sand, the tiny white grains sticking to her soaked skin and gown. His worshipping gaze wandered up and down her body. The blackened red nightgown clung to her body like a second skin. Her nipples jutted out invitingly and she breathed in shallowly as he spread her legs.

She allowed him to, even though it felt counter-intuitive, she was just so used to neglecting him that it felt odd to allow him the right to touch her this way. She noticed how there was something about his demeanor that was absolutely predatory, almost dangerous, and she felt she wouldn't have been able to neglect him if she had wanted to.

He hiked her gown above her waist and growled appreciatively when he saw her soaked crimson knickers. Hermione squirmed under his intense gaze. He rubbed her slit through the wet underwear and she gasped as he fingered her opening through them.

"You like this," he whispered huskily. It was less of a question and more of a fact.

"Yes," Hermione replied throatily. She was far too gone; drowning in the pleasure he made her feel, the electric blanket he had wrapped them around spiked her senses to incredible heights. The heights of the pleasure she was steadily rising to felt impossible.

Draco smirked, his eyes flashing with triumph.

He plunged two fingers inside of her. Hermione arched her back and gasped as exquisite pain shot through her body from her core. Draco chuckled as he latched his lips onto her womanhood; he sucked, licked and lapped. He started moving his fingers in and out, curving them upward. His tongue darted out to flick against her pearl and he nipped it.

Hermione's eyes clenched and she hissed at the intense pleasure he was causing. She was writhing under him as he pumped his fingers in and out of her.

"You're so hot and tight… _wife_," Draco murmured huskily against her and he breathed in her musky, sweet scent. It was the most effective aphrodisiac he had ever encountered. He moved up her body and peeled away the wet nightgown after he pulled her knickers down and discarded them.

He hungrily gazed at the naked beauty beneath him; she was his goddess. Smoothly he caressed her sides, running his elegant hands up her ribcage to cup both her breasts. Leaning down he first took one peak into his mouth then the other, suckling them ardently. Shortly afterward he grasped her arm purposefully and she tensed. Draco and Hermione looked into each other's eyes. The sound of the waves and breeze disappeared as the sound of their hearts drummed together in sync. They could both hear it. They could both hear the power their lovemaking produced. He dipped his head to the inside of her wrist and he kissed the delicate skin tenderly. Hermione watched him with dark eyes, glazed with pure lust.

"Claim me," she heard herself whisper. She was clearly aware that there was no going back, for this was the last ritual. Draco's eyes flickered closed; a look of pure bliss settling onto his facial features but before she could completely drink in the stunning sight he made, he bit the inside of her wrist. Hermione's breath hitched as his sharp teeth smoothly cut through her thin skin, she felt him drink the blood that poured out from the wound. An oppressive fire blazed throughout her whole body rapidly. It was like a poisonous flame.

"Shh love, it will pass," he whispered against her skin. He rubbed his lips against the bite, blood smearing over his inviting lips. True to his word Hermione felt the pain subside slowly being replaced with remarkable pleasure and a peculiar sort of hunger. There was a hunger that writhed through her and she wasn't sure what exactly she was suddenly so voracious for.

"Draco-"

In a flash he had cut the inside of his wrist and held it up to her mouth. Hermione moaned in appreciation as she grabbed his wrist with both hands and started lapping up his sweet blood hungrily. The strange hunger diminished as it was given what it asked for.

Draco pulled his arm away gently and lowered his lips to barely touch hers. He softly breathed onto Hermione's full lips, followed by his tongue darting out, he tasted his own blood that coated them. He maneuvered his body so that he was nestled in between her smooth thighs and Hermione sighed in bliss as she felt his thick organ nudge her entrance. In response she wrapped her legs around him. His hips rotated in shallow circles against her nether lips.

Hermione wriggled under him and he pinned her hips down. His cock throbbed and she felt it twitch against her. He leaned forward, pressing his engorged shaft into her opening. The head of his hardness slipped upwards, rubbing against her sensitive clit. The Gryffindor jumped at the shock of pleasure. Draco groaned and placed a hand under her derriere to elevate her hips and with his other hand he grasped his manhood and eased it into her.

Slowly Hermione felt Draco's intrusion. She whimpered under him and he moved his hands to pin her hips as she bucked to get him off and out of her as he stretched her painfully.

"You can take me," Draco said gruffly. Inch by inch he entered her scorching, buttered canal. Her walls tightened and fluttered around him and he had to use all of his self-control not to slam into her. For what seemed like eternity, Draco was at last completely embedded within her.

Her pain had faded as he had continued to push into her, with his entrance the arousing magic rolling off of his body in waves had doubled in intensity. Her every muscle tingled with delicious white-hot pleasure shocks, and the magic seemed to caress every inch of her ultra-sensitive skin. A silvery shimmering mist enveloped her, slithering along her scorching flesh like warm luxurious silk; stroking her relentlessly. It was driving her insane; she writhed under the Slytherin prince as her belly tightened. An unbidden, primal cry left her mouth as her womanhood began convulsing around his thickness uncontrollably. Fiery electricity that stunned every one of her nerves shot through her body from where they were joined; she shook her head from side to side as she trembled violently from the explosion that shot her through the stars. She clenched her eyes shut, seeing dots behind her vision as the force of her pleasure almost rendered her unconscious. The rush of her climax had been so quick and so intense it was frightening, she barely registered her terror of what type of physical ecstasy this man was able to work out of her body because her mind was in such a state of shock and mind-numbing lust.

Draco had almost lost it when she had climaxed, his lip was bleeding from where he had bitten so hard.

"Move," she commanded huskily, her eyes still closed. Draco's silvery gaze stared at her with wonder and he smirked darkly. He then leaned forward and kissed her lips softly, he breathed hotly against them.

"As you wish," he replied. He pulled out and then surged forward roughly; she cried out as her eyes flew open; He relentlessly began pumping himself in and out of her wildly. She thrashed and squirmed under him as pleasured whimpers escaped her lips…whimpers and gasps that soon turned into screams of unadulterated pleasure as he reached down and rubbed the bundle of nerves in between her legs. His rationality disappeared as their love-making became more heated. His body movements were utterly animalistic; rough and carnal. He was solely a creature of sensation at the moment as he made love to the most bewitching woman alive. A powerful feeling of possessiveness washed over him as he claimed her for himself. Hermione was his, Draco Malfoy's only. He pounded into her, basking in the satisfaction of bringing her the greatest sensual pleasure of her life. His skin pricked deliciously as the Veela within him practically purred with bliss, the painful burning had transformed into a purely pleasurable burn that incinerated him from the inside. He felt the Veela aura seep out of his pores uncontrollably and he didn't try to stop it because he knew it would be futile, he had locked up the seductive aura back for far too long. He knew that it was driving her insane with pleasure and she loved it as her body felt the best of sensations tenfold.

"Harder," she breathed out as she clawed at him. Her heavy-lidded eyes glowed with bliss.

Draco watched entranced by the witch beneath him. Hermione was breathtaking; her dark, luxurious hair was spread wildly over the sugar-white sand decorating a flushed exquisite face. Her eyes were like rich dark melted honey, sparkling with the pleasure he gave her and her rosebud lips were swollen from his kisses. Merlin, how he loved this woman, how he wanted to conquer her…body and soul.

He slowed his pace and leaned over her, placing both his hands on the sand each side of her face, pressing the lower length of his body against hers. Navel to navel, pelvis to pelvis. He pushed himself deeper into her and began grinding his hips against hers in teasingly slow circles; rubbing his sinewy, muscular body against her soft, feminine one. Hermione tangled her hands into his hair desperately and guided him to her lips. She caught his bleeding lower lip and sucked hard on it, moaning in pleasure at the taste of his Veela blood.

"You're mine," she snarled against his lips. She felt him smirk before he pulled away.

"It's about time you acknowledged that," he replied huskily. Before she could say anything else he pulled himself up and began pumping into her vigorously. She yelled out she felt the blood she had consumed flare within her; ecstasy pouring viciously through her veins.

Draco felt her tightening around his swollen manhood. She was going to come, and come hard. As he doubled his intensity to fall over the edge with her, he knew they weren't going to last any longer. With a roar from him and a scream from her they reached the heavens together. Her body quaked as she shattered around him and her eyes rolled to the back of her head when a tsunami of his magical aura hit her full force. Draco came heavily into her, he panted as his hips continued to jerk against hers.

He rolled them over, Hermione sprawled atop him in an unconscious bundle of heated satisfied flesh. He stroked her hair and kissed the top of her head tenderly. The roaring in his ears gradually left, making it possible to hear the hiss of the waves and chirruping of birds.

Draco smiled as a peace overtook him, he stood up and cradled Hermione's small body in his arms as he headed towards their cabin. He peered down at her face. There was a small smile tilting her lips inciting a wave of overwhelming affection to wash through him.

"Oh my darling Hermione, how I _love _you."

_**Author's note: I know. It's been literally FOREVER and as always...life got in the way (college especially!) So sorry, hope you enjoyed this chapter...hope my writing will get better as I start writing once again! :D Thank you SO much to all who have reviewed..I was honestly contemplating whether I should just stop writing fanfiction but I couldnt do that to you all! You've been so supportive and encouraging that I've decided to begin writing again :) I must admit that I've also missed it just a tad ;D**_


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